Chapter 22
The Immortal's Gate
The First has created a door, a magical exit of sorts. It is supposed to lead to other worlds, to other creations.
I wonder why he leaves; I know there was a great tragedy here many ages ago in our world, but no one in the village really knows what happened. Is that why the First is leaving us?
Many begged him not to go, afraid he disapproved of how they treated him. He does not wish to be revered as a God, and even though many try to accept his wishes, there is still reverence to him.
It wasn't us, He says he'll be back, for this place is his home and always shall be. But he is eager to explore, to seek new and wonderous lands.
"Leave the door unlocked," he told me.
Although I am happy for him- for this is the most youthful he has seemed in a long time- I still worry.
For do not doors work both ways?
Our First may leave, but I fear that something else may come in.
(In the corner there is a hastily written note, clearly not by the original author:
No no! Not come in, come back, something came back!)
Despite having been up way later than he had been in a very long time, Jesse still woke up really early.
And he didn't care.
They had gotten back to the house very early in the morning, tired, happy, and maybe a little sore from excessive dancing. Jesse glanced at the clock and determined that he had only slept a few hours at best, not even long enough to really sleep deep, nor dream. But he was still riding an adrenaline high of happiness, not the least bit tired.
Thunder rumbled softly outside. There might be a storm coming. He hoped it wouldn't ruin night two of the festival.
It was still pretty dim outside, the sun not yet peeking up over the horizon. Jesse slid out of bed, feeling the urge to go for a walk. He slipped on his clothes, pausing briefly as Petra rolled over in her bed, mumbling something in her sleep.
His friends were out cold, thoroughly winded from the night's excursions. Jesse smiled, happy that his relationship with them was back on the mending. He made a mental note to visit Ground Town soon, so he could give Ivor and Aiden his thanks as well.
Jesse slipped on the rest of his clothes, and then his shoes - he didn't bother to grab his armor- and trotted down the stairs. No one was up, not even Steve and Alex. He grabbed his coat - one that Alex had purchased for him- and stepped outside.
It was chilly for the late autumn morning; you could feel the bite of the incoming winter air. Mariah had mentioned it would probably come early this year, judging by the cold.
Jesse set off down the path, admiring the last of the autumn leaves still clinging from the trees. The wind would pick up now and then, taking a few of the stubborn ones with them. Jesse caught an oak leaf as it flittered down, rubbing the scarlet plant between his thumbs before letting the wind reclaim it.
He recalled Steve talking about a tree house home, the thought of it making him smile. But since there were seasons in this world Jesse concluded he might want to consider a pine tree instead of an oak. Maybe he'd just live on the ground, which would be fun to, anywhere here would be amazing actually.
He could live here; Steve and Alex wanted him here, the fact that he could make this home just...
It was quiet, the spawns here apparently liked to hibernate for winter. That was another feature Jesse found fairly pleasing. Sure they didn't always disappear upon death, and they were numerous and more aggressive, but he liked the thought of them going away for a few months.
He passed the watering hole, ice was already freezing over the calm waters- Ice skating Olivia loved ice skating, the small lake would be perfect for it.
Mt. Incendia rumbled in the distance, temporarily breaking the serenity, a fresh wave of smoke billowed from the mouth, and the ground just barely shook. Jesse paused from his walking.
Alex had said it wouldn't blow...
His mind wandered to his dream, thinking about the devastation and chaos that lay within those mountainous caverns. Did the First ever go back there?
Jesse wondered where the Immortal was right now. If he stayed here would he eventually meet him?
"Good morning Jesse,"
Jesse yelped turning around to see Brine. The elder was resting on a stone bench, a heavy fur coat billowing over his frail form.
"Oh," Jesse uneasily pushed hair out of his face, "Brine, I didn't see you there."
"I just waddled up while you were admiring the mountain." the old man answered.
"Yeah, well," he looked at the smoking behemoth, "I'm more amazed that the village lives right at the base of it. They're pretty brave to do that. Were you um, at the festival last night?"
Brine nodded, "For a little while yes, but these old legs don't dance like they used to. I was actually looking for you."
Jesse walked over to the bench, "Really? I didn't see you there."
"Eh, few thousand people, easy to blend in. But no matter, I wanted to show you this," he held out a book."
Jesse looked at it, "Did you find a breakthrough in your search?"
"More than just a breakthrough," the other grinned, "I found the Gate."
Jesse's eyebrows shot up, "You what?!"
"It is a jungle ruin not far from where we are now, roughly a four hour hike. Maybe longer, since I will be coming,"
Jesse took the book, thumbing through the pages even though he couldn't read them, "You found it?! You actually found the Immortal's Gate?"
"No, I found garden gate," the old man laughed, "Of course, did I not tell you I would find the Portal? We can go today if we leave early."
"Today?" Jesse faltered, "I um,"
"Oh you don't have to go through it!" Brine said, "But we do need to make sure it intact and still working. Don't worry; we'll be up there and back before the festival even starts again tonight."
"Are you sure we can't just wait two more days?"
Brine sighed, "I'm afraid not, there is a snowstorm coming, it will be here soon. Traversing the jungle is much harder than normal when there is a blizzard on top of you. Our world is different from yours; the weather isn't isolated to certain areas. If we don't hurry, you'll be stuck searching the hard way during winter."
"I-"
"Don't you want to get home Jesse?"
Jesse cringed a little, conflicted. This was so sudden, having the possibility of home right in front of him, and yet...He thought about what Steve said, the sooner he got home the sooner he could stay here. He could talk to Steve about the Gate...
"Talk to your friends," the old man patted Jesse on the shoulder, even through his fur lined coat the man's hands were cold. "I'll be on other side of the village on the bridge till noon. If you don't come I'll understand that you are not ready." he gently took the book back, "Talk to your friends."
Jesse looked back over his shoulder to the direction of Steve's house, "I'll talk to them-" he looked back.
Brine was gone.
Jesse hurried into the house, "Steve!" he whispered softly, shedding his coat at the door. "Steve I need to talk to you!"
Steve was a local, he knew about the Gate, he would understand Jesse's need to use it, right? Maybe he could even help him and the others up there. "Steve-" he stopped in the kitchen.
There was note on the dinner table he hadn't noticed it before. Jesse picked it up, reading the sturdy hand writing.
Kiddos,
Alex and I have some business to do outside of town today, you and your friends can hit a second run into town or just hang here. Or do whatever it is that pleases you most at the moment.
We probably won't be back till very late this afternoon, but I promise we'll get back to dancing tonight. Assuming we can still stand, I don't know about you but my feet are killing me. Maybe we'll just relax here at home. Who knows?
We'll see you soon, have fun.
Yours Truly, Steve and Alex
(p.s. From Alex, I made some waffle mix, it's in the fridge all you have to do is cook it! Love you kiddos!)
There was a little heart next to the love.
Jesse set the letter down on the table, feeling a heavy weight even though it was only paper. "Great..."
"Jesse?"
He looked up to see a disheveled Lukas coming down the stairs. He still had sleep in his eyes, his nightshirt was twisted, and his hair was floofing all over the place. Petra was right behind him, her hair messy enough to rival a gorgon. A red smear was on her cheek where a little girl had painted a heart the night prior. Her eyes were barely open as she dragged herself to the bottom of the stairs.
"Jesse?" Lukas repeated.
Jesse pushed the letter aside, "Sorry did I wake you guys?"
"You whisper loudly," Petra mumbled.
Lukas spotted the paper, "What's that?"
"It's a letter from Steve and Alex," Jesse explained, "They're going to be out of town till late afternoon."
"Then why do you look so bummed out about that?"
"I wanted to talk to them about getting their help."
"For what?"
"Guys, Brine found the Gate,"
Suddenly both Petra and Lukas were wide awake, running into the kitchen."What?" the female asked. "Are you serious?! Where?"
"The Immortal's Gate is in an old jungle ruin about three to four hours from here."
"And you wanted to talk to Steven and Alex about this?" Lukas asked.
"Well, yeah," Jesse shrugged, "This is something native to their world, but Brine says we can't wait."
Lukas crossed his arms, "And why is that?"
"There is a snowstorm coming, once it gets here we won't be able to access the jungle."
Petra rubbed the back of her neck, "Three to four hours?"
"Yeah..."
"We'll be back later than them then. If we come back,"
"We just need to make sure it's there, make sure it works. Then we can ask Steve and Alex if we can use it," Jesse pressed. "I...I want them to know about this."
"We can leave a note," Lukas suggested, "Telling them that we found the Gate and we'll be back."
"We can't risk a snowstorm ruining our chances," Petra agreed.
Jesse looked down at the paper, "Yeah..."
Jesse stared up at the temple before him. It was multiple stories high, stacked atop layer by layer almost like a pyramid, each section more narrow than the next. It was composed entirely out of stone. Some floors -namely the higher ones - were almost all open, only held up by pillars, while the rest were more solid with narrow glassless windows. The majority of the structure now claimed by the jungle vines. But the towers still spire high above the jungle canopy, a silent stone behemoth.
The Immortal's Temple.
"This is it," Brine said eagerly.
Progress hadn't been as slow as predicted, Brine moved pretty fast for an old man. This wasn't surprising since he was really good at reappearing and disappearing quickly.
The older male stumbled a little, right at the edge of the temple steps. "Op!"
Jesse quickly kneeled down, "Are you alright?"
"Fine fine, just help me in child. My heart can't take the excitement,"
Jesse pulled him up, trying to ignore the ice cold finger and guided him inside. "We wouldn't want that."
"Truly, who else can harness the Gate," the other laughed rasping, "And we can't go waiting on the Immortal now can we?"
Jesse just slightly smiled, as best as was polite and released his hand.
Lukas and Petra were already inside the first floor. Lukas was trying to make out some art on the wall, but most of it was faded and worn beyond repair.
"This was made post The Purging of Mt. Incendia. It's thousands of years old," Brine explained.
"Are you sure it's stable," Petra observed, stepping to the side as some small loose stones fell from the ceiling.
"Oh very," Brine assured, "The First prided himself in making his creations sturdy. He didn't have time for maintenance, so he built them to last."
"Where is the door?" Jesse asked.
Brine flipped through his notes, "On the floor third from the top, of the highest spire." He pointed down a hallway, "That way."
As they ascended the stairs through each floor, Jesse noticed Lukas and Petra were oddly quite. Neither was chattering away about the potential of finally getting home. In fact they almost walked slowly, absentmindedly, taking time to look at random things in the temple.
"Hey Brine,"
The old man looked at Jesse, "Yes?"
"You keep going we'll catch up," Jesse said, loud enough for Petra and Lukas to hear, "I just need to make sure we're all on the same game page."
The elder didn't seemed surprised by his hesitance. "Very well, see you at the top." then he waddled on.
Lukas and Petra glanced at each other, then followed after Jesse as he stepped out of the hallway and into a room with an open view.
"What's up man?" the female asked.
Jesse turned to face them, "Are you guys alright?"
Neither answered.
"So I'm not the only one bothered by this?" Jesse confirmed.
Lukas rubbed his arm, fiddling with his armor strap, "I feel like we're breaking the law for some reason, like being here is trespassing."
"I agree," Petra said, "I know this place is important to the locals, I just have to keep telling myself that if it was strictly off limits then Brine wouldn't be show us it."
"We're just going to see if it works...right?" Lukas asked.
Jesse sighed and nodded, "Then we're going back and telling Steve and Alex we found the Gate."
Petra looked around, "You think this place would have been booby trapped anyway if they didn't want people here. But I've seen nothing, I haven't even heard anything."
The jungle was eerily quiet for a jungle anyway. The only sound was the wind and the rumble of dark clouds moving in.
"Storms coming," Lukas observed. He looked back to the group, "Honestly, this wasn't how I planned on finding home. I just always assumed we'd just...find the door." he scoffed, "And here we are, with the easiest possible way to get back to our world, and I'm hesitating."
Jesse sighed again, running his fingers through his hair. "You're not the only one, trust me."
"Let's just get the damn thing lit yeah?" Petra said.
They headed back to the stairs, finding Brine already up on the floor third from the top. It was a large circular room, with another exit on the far end. There was a large ring of decorated stone. One side had a intricate circle covered in strange markings, the other side, was a simple obsidian frame.
Jesse felt his breath cut short.
"There it is...the door to every world. The path to all of Notch's creations. We found it," Brine said, "We found the Immortal's Gate."
Petra and Lukas both looked at Jesse, tense.
Jesse swallowed, once, twice, "Well...let's see if it works."
"Yes!" Brine clapped his hands together, then pointed, "That right over there opposite end of the door is the harnessing circle, that is where you summon the old magic"
"So what can we do?" Lukas asked.
"Use your flint to light the portal and I'll work wonders on my end." the old man was already moving towards the ring.
Petra looked at Jesse, she extended her hand, "I can do it if you want?"
Jesse silently pulled out the flint and steel and handed it over to the ginger. She gave him an encouraging smile, and walked towards the portal. Lukas lingered giving Jesse a tilt of his head, "You going to be okay?"
"Just give me a minute?" he asked. "I'll be right with you guys. I mean...it's not like we're going through."
Thankfully Lukas nodded, and left to join Petra.
Jesse stepped away from the circular room, retreating to an open balcony to the right of the Immortal's Gate.
Outside the wind was picking up, the sky was considerably darker too. It vaguely reminded him of his first day here. Above the jungle canopy and even beyond its edge into rolling fields the clouds swirled, dark grey and angry. Thunder boomed and lightning flashed within the grey folds of the sky. Some even shot down, hitting Mt. Incendia that looked no farther away than before.
Had they really walked four hours? It didn't feel like they had gone that far. He looked over his shoulder, the Adamans still behind him. He looked forward again, able to see the village festival lights in the dim light, resting at the base of the volcano.
They weren't that far at all...
The wind picked up for a second and Jesse rubbed his armored arms, wishing he had brought a coat to wear over his armor.
A storm was coming to the First World.
"Vast isn't it?"
Jesse jumped, not realizing the older man had snuck up behind him. Again. He pulled his gaze away from the scenery and looked at Brine, frowning, "That's one word for it."
Brine adjusted on his walking cane, "Of course," he waved his hand at the view as if to shoo it away, maybe even shun it. "I'm sure you've seen much more spectacular worlds than this old one."
"I think it's my favorite actually," Jesse answered testily, "I think it looks fine."
"Really?" he seemed surprised, "A bit outdated at least."
Jesse's frown deepened, but the other spoke up again before he could get another phrase in.
"You seem lost in thought?"
Jesse looked away, fighting down that growing sensation of unease, "A lot on my mind I suppose."
"Worried about what Steve and Alex might think if they knew you were here? They were out of town weren't they?"
His heart skipped a beat, how did Brine- "We left them a note, they know where we're going."
"But you didn't physically tell them?"
"Are you done prepping your old magic?" he asked instead, feeling a unnatural wave of irritation. "I thought it was difficult to summon?"
"Only if you're not old."
"Then what are we waiting for then?"
"Oh? Just waiting to confirm a few things."
Thunder boomed, deafeningly loud. Jesse looked up, startled to see that the storm had already reached them. Brine looked up at the sky as well, almost like he was irritated by the weather. He mumbled something in the old tongue, and then repeated aloud, "I have everything ready, but like I said, I need a few more things." And the old man slowly walked back into the sheltered safety of the ruins.
Jesse looked back out onto the terrain. The forest was alive with movement. The wind howled and the trees thrashed about in the harsh gale. A particular cust shoved his forward, towards the edge of the broken balcony. He looked over the ruins as far as he dared, eyeing the trees at the base of the temple ruin.
The winds shoved again and Jesse took a step back from the fifty foot drop.
The storm wailed, "Go! Go!" the wind seemed to cry.
Even Mother Nature itself was adding to his unease.
"You're doing it wrong!"
"Fine! You do it,"
Jesse turned around to see Lukas hand Petra the enchanted flint. The male looked irritated. "You've tried like twenty times already. I don't see why this is a problem. Jesse never has issues, it's not like it takes a special trick."
"You're just not aiming it at the Portal right," Petra huffed.
Lukas gestured to the Immortal's Gate, still unlit, "By all mean then."
The female hit the flint and the portal sparked, lighting up in a glorious blue hue. Petra grinned, "See? Not aiming it-"
The Immortal's Gate snuffed out, just as empty as before.
"You did it wrong," Lukas grinned.
Petra flushed, "Shut up man!" she hit the flint, twice, thrice, "Oh come on!"
The portal remained stubbornly dark.
"You guys okay?" Jesse asked, retreating from the balcony and into the shelter of the building. The thunder roared loudly above, but he ignored it.
"As you can see," Lukas explained, "The Gate won't light."
"And don't you dare say we're doing it wrong," Petra warned, "We can get it to turn on, it just won't stay on. I know there is no trick to this, we've seen you do it a thousand times!"
"Are you close enough?" Jesse suggested helpfully.
Petra frowned, and stuck her arm right into the center of the frame and hit the flint.
"Petra!"
But the gate still remained closed.
"You could have lost your arm!" Jesse stressed.
'Sorry, it's just so damn irritating. Why won't it light?"
"Maybe it is broken," Lukas said softly. "We should just leave before the storm-
"I'm ready on my end!" Brine called from the magical circle, it was glowing now. "Are we having trouble?"
Jesse stuck out his hand, "Here just let me give it a shot guys," he whispered.
"If you make it work, I swear..." Petra mumbled as she passed the enchanted tool over.
Jesse leaned close to the magic portal, and hit the flint-
Thunder roared, the ruins themselves shook!
With a loud bang and a whoosh of air the Immortal's Gate lit up in a vibrant diamond blue. Jesse yelped and fire poured from the sides, sending him and the others scrambling back. The heat singed the skin of his extended arm, regardless of the armor protecting him.
He and the others stumbled back, and Jesse fell to his knees, suddenly feeling drained.
Lukas dropped down next to him, "Jesse?!"
"I-I'm fine."
"Holy crap," Petra put a hand on the Jesse's shoulder, gaping, "Guys, look!" she pointed.
Jesse followed her pointing finger back to the portal. Inside the blue glow of the Gate, Jesse could actually see what lay on the other side of the magical door. There was a dessert, and a large sandstone temple in the distance-
The door shifted, and Jesse saw ocean. Then he saw a castle, floating high above in the clouds
Castles.
Cities.
Oceans.
Moons.
It all flashed by, one after the other.
The Immortal's Gate...Portal to a thousand worlds...It worked.
Jesse stared at it, and despite the good news before him, he couldn't shake hi unease.
"It works," Lukas gasped. "It-it actually works. We can go home, we tell Steve and Alex and- and..."
Lightning cracked down right outside the temple.
"Shit!" Petra cursed, struggling to stay standing as the entire foundation shook, "What the hell is wrong with the weather?!"
"You don't think it has anything to do with lighting the door do you?" Lukas asked, paling slightly.
Jesse stood, "Let's just go, we know it works. We'll come back when it's safer."
Petra turned, "Brine we're-" she froze.
Jesse turned to see Brine standing in the middle of his circle, the stones no longer glowing. Brine was laughing. He stepped out of the magical ring, grinning broadly.
Jesse's stomach twisted at that smile. "What is so funny?" he demanded.
The old man smiled, "The weather has nothing to do with the door," then he shrugged, "Well, maybe a little."
The wind wailed! Lighting shot down through a gap in the ceiling, striking the floor next to Brine. Jesse and the others cried out in alarm and shielded their eyes as the room went blinding white.
Jesse's heart was in overdrive, his flight instincts were screaming. Something was wrong very very wrong!
They looked up, Brine was still standing there when the light receded. He was unfazed as he looked up at the sky, "Missed," he said dryly, then he started laughing, and flipped back his hood.
Petra screamed, and Lukas actually took a step back. Jesse stared in horror as the old man's face rapidly began to rot, like death.
His entire body was doing it, rotting, melting away, turning to dust and scattering to the winds, till there was nothing but bone and all the while Brine kept laughing. But soon the bones straightened, and muscle and flesh slowly formed over them human framed.
Jesse stared in terror as a new body and a new face stood before them. His skin was darker, tanner, he was thicker too. There were...there were burns, on his skin, patches all over. And his eyes-
'Brine' stretched, "Oh," he adjusted the tattered clothing on him, now much too small, "Oh, have you any idea how long I've had to sit in that rotting corpse?" he cracked a neck joint, opening his eyes as he looked at Jesse.
Oh gods his eyes.
Petra gasped, covering her mouth, her hands were shaking.
Jesse's breath hitched.
There were no irisises, only white. White eyes.
"What's going on?!" Lukas was pale.
Petra was shaking her head, "The phantom," she said, her voice muffled.
The new Brine looked directly at Jesse, "You have no idea, how long I've waited for this."
"Jesse what do we do?" Petra asked, taking a step back.
'Brine' rolled his shoulders, "Now, back to work yeah?"
"Guys?! What's the plan?!" Lukas was frantic.
Jesse was frozen, his heart pounding. It was his dream, it was the brother. But he was dead, he couldn't be here! He couldn't be here!
The stranger smiled at him, as if sensing his turmoil.
"You and I have some business to attend to Jesse" he said.
"Jesse!" his friends cried.
Jesse took one look at the man, and those soulless white eyes. The enemy crouched, grinning -
"RUN!"
N͟ex̶̯̳t͈̠̘ ͉̬͕̮̘̞T͏̹̖̠im̙̰̕e͡ ̜̕O̼̘͍̝n̛̼̳͉̯̙̫ͅ ͈̠̳̲̬̹̜M̺̰̫̝C̙͈̪̻̮͝S͔͈̗͔̳͕M̻͈̼͓: Im̤̱̩̞̘͟m͔̜o̬r̵̯̭͚ͅt̮a̭̤͚̹͕l҉̹͖̗̣̲̦̲'̘̫ș̝̜̩͘ ͓̭̙̼̦̜̖C̱͓͙͈͚̬͔͞h͓͇̼̟̱̰͉͟i̱̲̞͇̲̥ͅl̘̲̳d̢͙̩͔̟̤̪:
"R'v orwjuuh qnan, crvn oxa bxvn odw.
Hxd'en juu bjrm vh wjvn j uxc qjenw'c hxd?
R'v lxvrwp oxa hxd vh mnja Yarvdb..."